What works best on Instagram?

What works best on Instagram? - Portugal Business News

Marketing News - This is what works best on Instagram including how Social Media Platforms compare by growth rate in 2026, what is the best posting frequency, what is the best time to post and what content works best on Instagram in 2026, according to a report published by Metricool.

Why Instagram is important for branding in 2026?

Instagram is still the darling of social media as it is the platform where being seen means staying relevant. Brands know it, and they’re still pouring their efforts into the Instagram platform. in 2026, brands have published 24% more content on Instagram and Instagram has rewarded brands with 27% more views and 19% more interactions.

How do Social Media Platforms compare by growth rate in 2026?

1 - TikTok growth rate:

On TikTok 16% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

2 - Instagram growth rate:

On Instagram 9% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

3 - LinkedIn growth rate:

On LinkedIn 7% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

4 - YouTube growth rate:

On YouTube 4% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

5 - Facebook growth rate:

On Facebook 4% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

6 - Twitter X growth rate:

On Twitter - X - 1% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026

7 - Pinterest growth rate:

On Pinterest 1% of accounts have moved to a higher category in 2026.

What is the best posting frequency on Instagram in 2026?

The best posting frequency on Instagram for small accounts:

The best posting frequency on Instagram for small accounts is posting 7-14 times/week as it is where interactions peak, and the algorithm rewards the rhythm.

The best posting frequency on Instagram for Medium accounts:

The best posting frequency on Instagram for Medium accounts that have a higher ceiling peak at 14 -30

times/week.

The best posting frequency on Instagram for accounts with over 100K followers:

For the best posting frequency on Instagram for accounts with over 100K followers, it works in the opposite way compared to small accounts. The less large accounts post, the more each post gets. A huge account posting less than once a week averages nearly 6x more interactions per post than one posting daily.

What is the best time to post on Instagram?

The best time to post on Instagram is between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., any day of the week. That’s when more people are online, which means more chances for your content to hit its view peak and reach the right audience.

What content works best on Instagram?

Using carousels and reels:

In 2026, a single Views metric applies to all formats. This means that each time a carousel is re-served, it counts as a new view, and the same goes for every Reel play and replay, with no playback threshold. Instagram isn’t just showing content once and moving on. It’s bringing posts back to users who didn’t engage the first time, while also rewarding saves and shares, and this unstoppable rise in views is where the algorithm comes in.

Instagram works best for small accounts:

Growth on Instagram is more likely when you’re small, especially for accounts with up to 10K followers. At that level, with the right content strategy, you can gradually gain visibility and grow your audience. While small users have an 11% growth, big accounts only have a 1% growth.

Steadily posting content:

On Instagram, people land on your profile and decide to stay because of your content. Growth may be slower, but it’s steady.

Reels have the best performance:

The algorithm pushes Reels to new audiences, expanding reach. For interactions, Reels lead by a large percentage. The average Reel generates over 4x the interactions of a single-image post and, more importantly, it's the only format whose engagement rate has actually grown with a +24.76% growth rate.

Reels have been shared 67% more than in 2025, confirming that users are not only consuming the content, but are actively distributing it. If there's one format to get right on Instagram in 2026, Reels are it.

The Average Watch Time for Instagram Reels is up 118% compared to 2025, pushing Total View Time up by 139%.

Cinematic short reels:

Short Reels with a cinematic feel do best: including smooth movements, warm colors, and close-up details.

Carousels outperform single-image posts

Carousels gets more than double the reach and views compared to single-image posts, and have almost 4x more

interactions. Carousels on Instagram generate 4.7x more views and 5.8x more interactions on Instagram than on TikTok.

Content that creates emotions:

Content that sparks emotional recognition does best: it’s not trying to sell you anything, it simply tells a story that makes you think, “I’ve felt that too.”

Captions that create emotions:

Captions that work as emotional hooks do best as they connect with the viewer through an almost poetic style.

Niche content:

With Niche content, people know what to expect from you: you don’t have to convince anyone to follow you. If they do, they already know what they’ll find on your profile, and that’s exactly why they stick around.

Do not use hashtags:

Hashtags are losing ground on Instagram, and posts that use them get 32% fewer views and 34% fewer interactions. Instagram now indexes captions via keyword search, and since July 2025, public posts also appear in Google and Bing results. The words you use in your captions now work for you beyond the platform. That’s why natural language matters more than ever, especially when you include keywords related to your business. In other words: Instagram SEO is here.

Use a question in you title:

Instagram posts that include a question get almost 37% more comments than posts that don’t.

Do not ask for Likes:

When you ask for likes on Instagram, posts get almost 5% fewer than when you don’t.

Add @ mentions to your posts:

People who add @ mentions to their posts do better as tagging another profile can significantly increase visibility, driving 108% more reach for Tiny accounts and 36% more reach for Small accounts. The effect is even stronger for comments, where Small and Medium accounts see much more conversation when a mention is included.

Have a brand identity:

Having a brand identity makes you recognizable and it is the best advantage when competing in a saturated space. It also leads to collaborations.